Emirates SIN-DXB-BCN in Y: Paella, Xuxo & FC Barcelona vs Sevilla@Camp Nou (Part I)

[icn.sg]

Hey yflyer,

For a moment, I thought you were writing about my latest trip!

Just got off an EK flight yesterday. Was in cool and wet DXB (19 deg in the day, drizzling in March!) for work, and had the partner come along.

- SIN-DXB on the 777-300 (with old AVOD IFE). Yes the seats were obviously narrower at the shoulder, but leg room is superior to the A380. The B seat was empty, but I imagine that it will be very uncomfortable if I had someone seated right next to me.

- DXB-SIN on the A380 (with first generation seats and IFE...but still very good). Selected the D and G seats (also separate PNRs) at the back of the bus. Flight was 70% full in Y. As anticipated, E,F remained empty. Partner slept very well across E,F and G.

The EK Terminal is huge and very crowded. If you belong to the class of people with no lounge privileges, DXB is not where you want to transit. 80% of floor space in the departure level is dedicated to retail...leaving 20% for general seating/resting, washrooms and gates. I learn to appreciate Changi more after each trip.

[yflyer]

Hey yflyer,

For a moment, I thought you were writing about my latest trip!

Just got off an EK flight yesterday. Was in cool and wet DXB (19 deg in the day, drizzling in March!) for work, and had the partner come along.

- SIN-DXB on the 777-300 (with old AVOD IFE). Yes the seats were obviously narrower at the shoulder, but leg room is superior to the A380. The B seat was empty, but I imagine that it will be very uncomfortable if I had someone seated right next to me.

- DXB-SIN on the A380 (with first generation seats and IFE...but still very good). Selected the D and G seats (also separate PNRs) at the back of the bus. Flight was 70% full in Y. As anticipated, E,F remained empty. Partner slept very well across E,F and G.

The EK Terminal is huge and very crowded. If you belong to the class of people with no lounge privileges, DXB is not where you want to transit. 80% of floor space in the departure level is dedicated to retail...leaving 20% for general seating/resting, washrooms and gates. I learn to appreciate Changi more after each trip.

Wow...yes...we have very similar approaches to seat selection, icn.sg!

Regarding seat pitch, I always felt the EK A380 was at least as good as the EK 777, although maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention. Will look more closely next time. In terms of Y seat width and overall cabin ambience, the EK A380 is much better, though, so maybe because of that I didn't really notice the difference in seat pitch.

Regarding DXB, yes I agree that if you don't have lounge access, DXB isn't that much fun unless you enjoy shopping non-stop ...

Rain in Dubai is a fairly rare event! My friends there always say that the best time to head up to the observation deck at the Burj Khalifa is after any rainfall, since all the dust is gone, and you can see far into the distance!

[Durian]

Hi yflyer, I have yet to read again your Kansai TR after I went there 2 weeks ago that you are already on something else

Great start to the trip !
How were you entitled to enter the EK lounge in DXB ?
It might be difficult to describe, but does a 777 with 10-abreast feels like ? More cramped or much more cramped ? I assume it depends on your body type... are aisles narrower too ?

Good observation about the crew wearing specs
Very true that I do not recall one wearing some on SQ ! Probably the same type of requirements on SQ about how the SQ Girl must look like...

[yflyer]

Hi yflyer, I have yet to read again your Kansai TR after I went there 2 weeks ago that you are already on something else

Great start to the trip !

Thanks, Durian! Wish I could have made it to the first SIN-KUL A350 flight to meet you and the others! Hope you enjoyed Osaka!

How were you entitled to enter the EK lounge in DXB ?

Well it's a long story, but it essentially boils down to the fact that my travel is almost exclusively in economy class. I started out flying only SQ, but I realized that despite flying between 150K-200K BIS miles per year for many many consecutive years exclusively on SQ, I would never have any benefits on SQ beyond KF / Star Gold.

Since that time, I've essentially flown SQ each year only up to the 50K miles KF/Star Gold qualification limit, then for the rest of the year, after qualifying for Star Gold, I fly Oneworld, using my Qantas FF membership, and have always qualified for either Gold or Platinum on QF (e.g. OW Sapphire/Emerald) in the remainder of the year, which is how I can access Oneworld lounges.

And purely by luck, because of the QF/Emirates tie-up, I can also access the Emirates Lounges in DXB or anywhere else (These are not open to regular Oneworld FF's unless they are QF FF members).

So these days, I fly SQ, LH, CX, KA, BA, JL, QF, AA and EK on a regular basis, and have found a lot to like about all these airlines, even if SQ remains my favourite.

It might be difficult to describe, but does a 777 with 10-abreast feels like ? More cramped or much more cramped ? I assume it depends on your body type... are aisles narrower too ?

Immediately upon entering the 777 10-abreast cabin, a frequent flyer on 9-abreast 777's will find it noticeably more tightly packed. You know the feeling when you board a 737 and it feels slightly more cramped than an A320? Think of that feeling, but amplified a notch or two.

If you are in an aisle seat, or have an empty seat next to you, or if you are travelling with a partner or family member, it doesn't actually feel that bad.

But if you are in a middle seat on a full 10 abreast 777, in between two large or even normal sized people, it does not feel good at all. I could take it for 2-3 hours, but not much longer than that.

When I fly in an SQ 10-abreast A380 main deck, a 9-abreast 777, or an 8-abreast A330, I am comfortable during the flight. I can relax and even sleep. On a 10-abreast 777, after 2-3 hours, I just want the flight to end. Not unbearable, but not comfortable either.

[yflyer]

Continuing with the TR...

Barcelona is a very easy place for visitors to get around. The city is fairly compact, and is great for walking.

The subway is a very convenient way to get around. Subway tickets are charged by the trip. Rather than buy individual tickets (More expensive), you can buy a stored value card good for 10 trips, or better yet, buy "Hola BCN!" transport day-passes for between 2 and 5 days. These passes are good not just for the subway and trams, but also for the newly opened subway line right to the airport. This new airport subway line just opened in February 2016, so not that many people know about it.



The subway itself is quite user-friendly...



There is very precise information about exactly when the next train will arrive, with displays counting down the time to the second...



Taxi's are not expensive compared to the UK or Germany, but we did not use too many taxi's while there, as the subway was so convenient, and the weather was perfect for walking.

There are also open-top tourist buses that are great for an initial orientation to the city.

[yflyer]

On the evening of the day we arrived, I brought a slightly jetlagged Mrs yflyer to El Xampanyet...a small, and very lively, tapas bar in the Born area of Barcelona...



It opened at 7pm in the evening. When we walked by at 6.20pm there was no-one there, but when we returned at 6.40pm a crowd had already formed -- and when doors opened at 7pm, the crowd (Comprising both locals and a whole lot of visitors) surged in to grab tables -- if you missed the initial seating, you would be in for a very long wait before you got your table!

We managed to snag a small table near the entrance, and we began, like almost every other table there, with a bottle of the house-made sparkling wine, which the bar is named after.



I ordered a few tapas, many of the favourites from my visit here the previous year, but another good strategy was to simply look at anything interesting the other tables were having, pointing to that and ordering it yourself!

Clams...



Two kinds of anchovies...



Jamon Iberico, the Spanish ham which is a must try in Barcelona...



Tender fried lamb, accompanied by green chilli peppers...where most were mild, but one out of every 20 or so is said to be quite hot. I know this for a fact now, because I ate one of the ultra-spicy ones!



Mrs yflyer said that the lamb was some of the most tender and tasty she had ever eaten...

We also had squid...



We eyed the octopus that a gentleman at the next table was eating, but were just too full to eat any more.

We finished with a popular dessert here: a selection of sweets, cakes and a hard biscuit/cookie which you dipped in the sweet liquor in the middle...very tasty!



If you want a quiet, intimate dining experience, this is not the place. You are sitting (or standing) around a cramped table, surrounded by other diners. It is packed to the gills, noisy and very festive, which is not surprising considering the amount of food and alcohol being consumed. And yet, service is ultra friendly, cheerful and very quick. And the food is simply delightful! Worth a visit just for the ambience...

[yflyer]

The morning after we arrived, Mrs yflyer waited patiently until I woke up, then declared where we would be heading for breakfast that morning: Boqueria Market...



This is a market, close to Las Ramblas, which has both fresh produce and seafood, as well as several notable eating outlets, some open for breakfast.

Our first stop was Pinotxo Bar, whose long bar counter was already full when we arrived...



A huge menu was available for breakfast. None of this "continental breakfast" nonsense that airlines (and some hotels) try to pass off as adequate for a morning meal. Apart from pastries and bread, there was a huge selection of meat and seafood dishes to choose from, all arrayed in a long glass counter along the bar...



...and like so many notable restaurants, this establishment had a face to it...Mr Juanito Bayen, the warm and friendly proprietor, who was manning the expresso machine on both occasions we ate there.



He warmly welcomed us and showed us to our seats, right across from where he prepared deliciously looking latte's and cappucino's...



The first time we were there, we asked him for recommendations for what to eat...their speciality was delicious Xuxo's (Pronounced "Choo cho's"), soft, crumbly pastries with creamy custard filling...





...we ate Spanish omelette and bread with rubbed tomato...



...and a plate of fragrant, spiced, chickpeas...



...but that was just the tip of the iceberg, looking around us, other diners were indulging in many other delicacies, including octopus, and a meat dish in gravy...those looked delicious! What was it? We returned a few days later to find out, this time starting with tender baby squid and beans...



..and this next dish, an amazing plate of stewed beef cheeks...



"...that's not fat...those are cheeks, collagen...good for smooth skin...", one of Mr Bayen's assistants said as he placed the platter in front of us, gesturing towards his cheeks to get the message across. He obviously was keen to ensure we ate it all, and we did!



...despite speaking almost no English, Mr Bayen was a very warm host and seemingly made it his personal goal to ensure that Mrs yflyer and I (as well as everyone else along the counter) had a great time there!

[yflyer]

Elsewhere in the market, there was a lot to see...

Seafood...





Percebes (Goose barnacles), a delicacy not commonly found elsewhere...





A lot of different meat was available from specialty stores, including beef, lamb (some of them displayed whole), chicken and rabbit...



...and a lot of specialty meats, organs, and parts, displayed in all their full, squeamish glory...

[yflyer]

Spices...



Fruit...including tropical fruit...



...fruit juices are apparently a fairly new thing here, but very popular now...

[yflyer]

Another highlight of Boqueria Market was this place that had a very good selection of jamon iberico.



The premium jamon here was all hand-sliced (Very important, as you get superthin slices that allow you to really savour the ham), and they had a very generous tasting policy, where you could sample many selections before making a decision.



They all tasted subtly different, although I would be hard pressed to distinguish them.

We bought jamon to eat there, as well as many flat vacuum packs, of different varieties of jamon, to bring home. There was a bewildering array to choose from, from different parts of Spain, acorn-fed (Bellota...noticeably richer in taste), and aged for different number of years.

[yflyer]

Our next meal stop that day was a mid-afternoon meal ("Lunch", but taken a little later in the day than is common in Singapore) at Passadis Del Pep, but before that, I thought I would work off a few calories by heading to the beach for a run.

This is not the first time I have covered this running route on SQTalk, but it remains one of my favourite running routes, and the weather in Barcelona that week was perfect. Total running distance that day was just over 11km.



My run started from the Four Points Sheraton Barcelona Diagonal, down Rambla Del Poblenau, a tree-lined boulevard lined with restaurants and shops that goes right to the waterfront.





From there, I turned right and ran along the scenic, windy, beachfront...



...towards Port Olimpic...



...reaching the striking W hotel, before heading back the way I came...



Here is another picture of the W hotel, taken on another run later the next week, when it was clouder, but no less bright and sunny...



On the return route, back along the same beach, I took care to turn off the beach at the junction towards Poblenau, and not overshoot towards the next stretch of beach, the section of Mar Bella Beach from Poblenau to Diagonal Mar...where the waterfront promenade continues, but where the beachgoers there have a slightly more liberal view of a fun day at the beach...



...not noticing the sign was a mistake I made on my very first trip to Barcelona many years back...jogging along Mar Bella Beach, fully dressed in PT attire and increasingly wide-eyed at the spectacle before me, only noticing the sign indicating exactly what kind of beach that was, when I reached the far end...

[yflyer]

I had just enough time to shower and change, before it was time to head out for our late lunch at Passadis Del Pep. A restaurant I've covered previously on SQTalk: Tucked away inside a building, with no visible signboard outside...



...and no menu inside. There was no need to order: the restaurant would decide what you eat.

You were given a complimentary half bottle of Cava to start...



...and then the dishes would come...mainly seafood but with the possibility of a meat course or two towards the end...

The last time I had come here, it was on a previous work trip, with an old friend and ex-colleague: It was the most memorable lunch of that visit, and I had promised to bring Mrs yflyer one day. Well, promises are made to be kept!

Apart from the cava, we asked our waiter to recommend a bottle of white wine...he brought a bottle of El Perro Verde, a fruity Spanish white wine made from the Verdejo grape that would go very well with the seafood to come...



Spanish chorizo...



Razor clams, served piping hot...



Jamon Iberico, eaten with bread with olive oil and rubbed tomato...





Sea snails...



Small prawns (Or are they shrimp?)...



Calamari...



Delicious large prawns, grilled and sprinkled with salt...we enjoyed sucking the warm liquid out of the heads...



Each dish was served on a common platter for sharing...

By now we were starting to feel a little full, but we pressed on...

[yflyer]

The next dish was a cross between a prawn and a crayfish, beautifully grilled...



...and after that endless procession of seafood...finally a meat course...a creamy cannelloni with beef filling...rich and yet smooth and very easy to eat, this was a very enjoyable dish...



...we thought that the cannelloni, being a meat dish, signalled the last course...certainly I was already feeling quite full.

But we were mistaken: our main course had yet to come...

...we simply stared open-mouthed with surprise when our waiter presented our mains: two different mains -- quail for me, and lamb for Mrs yflyer. How and why they decided on different main courses for me and Mrs yflyer will forever remain a mystery, but I do know that we forfeited any right to make any decision on what to eat the moment we stepped in...

My quail was delicate...



...Mrs yflyer's lamb was hearty and rich, with a depth of flavour not often encountered...



After all that, again based on our waiter's judgement of what would tickle our taste buds, we were presented with a soft cheese, layered with truffle, in lieu of dessert...



...a wholly unexpected and novel combination for us both, but it was a heavenly choice...the dry, musky, taste of the truffle was a beautiful contrast to the cold, runny and pungent cheese...a delightful way to end our meal.

And after that, a complimentary free flow of two dessert liqueurs...Xantiamen Licor de Hierbes and Aguardiente de Orujo Xantiamen Blanco...



Just like the last time, the itemized bill came to just over EUR 100 a head for the food, with the suggested wines very reasonably priced as well...one of the more expensive meals we had in Barcelona, but a very delicious and memorable meal, notable for letting the fresh ingredients and seafood speak for themselves, as well as just the novelty of not knowing anything about what was coming next until it was placed in front of you...

[yflyer]

For the next few days, we moved to another hotel close by, the Silken Diagonal. This was a 5-7 minute walk from the Four Points, also along Avinguda Diagonal. This is located next to Torre Agbar, a distinctive tower shaped like a cyclinder with a rounded top. It is close to Glories shopping mall, which has a large Carrefour supermarket wihin it.

This hotel is right next to Glories metro station, just a few stops from Placa Catalunya, making it very convenient to get around Barcelona.

When visiting Barcelona, there is always a question of whether it is worth staying in a hotel in a prime location like Placa Catalunya, or Las Ramblas, or if it was ok to stay a little further away.

Based on this trip and past experiences, I would say it is very feasible to stay away from Placa Catalunya or Las Ramblas, as long as there is a metro station close by. There is no need to pay a premium to stay right in the centre of town.

The Silken is a hotel with very modern styling. We were lucky this time round, and were given a room with a very good view of Gaudi's Sagrada Familia, less than 2km away.

[yflyer]

Although I had been to Barcelona several times in the past, those were all work trips, and apart from a single open-top bus tour a few years ago, I really did not explore the city or see the sights on previous occasions -- those were purely work trips.

This time, of course, Mrs yflyer was here. The next day, a Sunday, we headed out to explore some of Barcelona's attractions.

One of our first stops was Park Guell. Designed by Gaudi, this used to be a private residence, but has been turned into a public park, giving us a first glimpse of Gaudi's unique style and genius...



...this is not a very large park, but it was a stunning...



...anyone who sets foot inside enters a magical and beautiful world...



...intricate and maddeningly complex yet beautiful...







You also get great views of the city...



Park Guell is perched on a hill overlooking Barcelona. There is a metro station about 15-20 minutes walk from the park, below the hill, but as getting there involves an uphill climb, it is better to take a taxi to the park, and then walk down to the metro when you leave.

On the walk down to the metro after leaving the park, I passed this street sign, which seems to embody the dream of many Singaporeans...